Administrators have been appointed over the business behind South Fremantle's Running With Thieves, Atari Enterprises. However, the brewery says they continue to trade as normal as they restructure debt.
On August 22, Atari filed a document with ASIC, stating Cameran Hugh Shaw from Hall Chadwick had been appointed as an administrator.
The brewery and distillery opened its doors to the public in late 2020, with cofounder Scott Douglas having previously been involved with Black Brewing.
Speaking to The Crafty Pint, Scott said they're continuing to trade as normal, have kept all their staff and the administrators are happy with the business. He says the decision came as a result of the difficult trading conditions they had to operate under following their launch and the various challenges impacting the industry.
"To survive through that, we had to take on a fair bit of debt and now we've been trying to work out arrangements with various creditors," Scott says.
"The company is trading strong, it's growing 30 percent year on year, but it's really just that debt that was incurred to survive through COVID with the new business."
The Running With Thieves concept was developed in 2013 as a lifestyle and apparel brand, later producing its wide range of beers and spirits in a substantial warehouse and venue on Marine Terrace.
The news follows a spate of voluntary administrations in the last year, with Brisbane-based Ballistic Beer Co doing so in January before being able to continue operating following investment from a new ownership group that was led by the team at Catchment. Tribe Breweries likewise appointed administrators in February and was rescued by a buyout proposal led by Kathmandu co-founder Jan Cameron's charity, the Elsie Cameron Foundation.
Running With Thieves, however, is the first of such administrations involving a WA brewery in recent years.
UPDATE 03/10
On October 3, the following media statement was released by the administrators, Hall Chadwick, stating they had received a proposal for Running With Thieves and the next creditors meeting was being adjourned for a number of weeks.
Media Statement
Richard Albarran, Cameron Shaw and Aaron Dominish, Joint and Several Administrators of Atari Enterprises Trading Company Pty Ltd (Administrators Appointed) (“the Company”, “Running with Thieves”), have confirmed receipt of a Deed of Company Arrangement (“DOCA”) proposal for the Company which has led to the second creditors’ meeting being adjourned for a maximum of nine weeks from 27 September 2023.
In advance of the nine-week deadline, the Administrators will continue negotiations regarding any DOCA proposals and then prepare a supplementary report to creditors providing further details on the estimated outcome.
The Administrators are continuing to work alongside the Director of the Company and its existing senior management team to ensure the ongoing trading operations continue as ‘business as usual’.
With warmer weather approaching, the Company’s team has worked hard behind the scenes to increase stock levels and the Administrators welcome the continued patronage of the community. Creditors seeking further information should contact Mr Jackson Shilling of Hall Chadwick via email at JShilling@hallchadwick.com.au.
